8 Months Pregnant And Just 8 Stone. Anorexic Holly Is Trying To Put On Weight For Her Baby's Sake

14/08/2014 16:51
|
Updated
22 May 2015

Keith Kendrick
Parentdish UK

An anorexic mum-to-be is desperately trying to pile on the pounds because she weighs just 8 stone – despite being eight months' pregnant.

Holly Griffiths, 21, doesn't look like she's one month away from her due date and is battling to increase her weight so that she can have a healthy baby.

Holly, from Greenwich, South London, has struggled with anorexia for more than seven years. She has already battled through one pregnancy while suffering the condition to give birth to her son, Dylan, now three.

During her first pregnancy Holly cut her calories back so drastically that she cracked one of her ribs as Dylan struggled to grow in her tiny frame. She is now suffering with the disorder again while carrying her unborn baby girl, who she's already named Isla.

To her relief, a 4D scan of child has already shown the baby looks healthy.

But Holly said: "I know I have to eat for the baby, but it's hard to push the voices away that are telling me I'm fat.

"When I first discovered I was pregnant, I was terrified of having to gain weight again. I suffered terrible morning sickness which caused my weight to drop, triggering my anorexia.

"I had thoughts of purging, but didn't need to, my body was reacting in it's own way. This made eating a lot easier, because I would just vomit it up anyway."

Holly, who sees a high-risk maternity doctor and has scans every month, is now determined to gain at least another 3lbs by the end of the pregnancy.

Now 34 weeks pregnant and experiencing contractions that have been suppressed with drug treatment, Holly will have her pregnancy induced by doctors in three weeks.

She said: "Thankfully my baby girl is a healthy size and the doctors are happy with my progress.

"I'm trying to snack on nuts and cheese and drink high calorie smoothies every day. I'm desperate to recover so I can teach my kids a healthy way to approach food.

"I couldn't bear it if they had body issues like me. I would never forgive myself if I pass this illness onto my kids, so I'm continuing to fight the voices in my head and get better for them."

Holly was just eight when her battle with anorexia began. After taking up ballet dancing as a child, the pressure to be very slim soon affected her and she started skipping meals and over-exercising.

At 12 years old she saw her GP and was admitted to a children's psychiatric clinic in south east London where she received counselling and was diagnosed with anorexia a few days before her 13th birthday, weighing just 5st 5lbs. She was put on a food plan and was allowed back home as an outpatient until she reached a healthy weight.